diff --git a/backend/services/admin-service/Dockerfile b/backend/services/admin-service/Dockerfile
index 09769b89..0194446c 100644
--- a/backend/services/admin-service/Dockerfile
+++ b/backend/services/admin-service/Dockerfile
@@ -43,8 +43,8 @@ RUN apt-get update && apt-get install -y --no-install-recommends \
     curl \
     && rm -rf /var/lib/apt/lists/*
 
-# Create app directory with correct ownership
-RUN mkdir -p /app && chown nestjs:nodejs /app
+# Create app directory and uploads directory with correct ownership
+RUN mkdir -p /app /app/uploads && chown -R nestjs:nodejs /app
 WORKDIR /app
 
 # Switch to non-root user before installing dependencies
@@ -61,6 +61,13 @@ RUN DATABASE_URL="postgresql://user:pass@localhost:5432/db" npx prisma generate
 # Copy built files
 COPY --chown=nestjs:nodejs --from=builder /app/dist ./dist
 
+# Create uploads directory with correct ownership (before volume mount)
+# This ensures the directory exists and has correct ownership
+# Note: When a named volume is mounted, if it's empty, Docker will copy the container's directory content to it
+USER root
+RUN mkdir -p /app/uploads && chown -R nestjs:nodejs /app/uploads
+USER nestjs
+
 # Create startup script that runs migrations before starting the app
 RUN printf '%s\n' \
     '#!/bin/sh' \